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Abstract

We suggest a new type of efficient light-trapping structures for thin-film solar cells based on arrays of planar nanoantennas operating far from their plasmon resonances. The operation principle of our structures relies on the excitation of collective modes of the nanoantenna arrays whose electric field is localized between the adjacent metal elements. We calculate a substantial enhancement of the short-circuit photocurrent for photovoltaic layers as thin as 100–150 nm. We compare our light-trapping structures with conventional anti-reflecting coatings and demonstrate that our design approach is more efficient. We show that it may provide a general background for different types of broadband light-trapping structures compatible with large-area fabrication technologies for thin-film solar cells.

Left: A unit cell of the interband TFSC based on CIGS. Right: A unit cell of the TFSC based on Si. Side view and top view of the unit cell are given in scale with the reference length unit. P-doped and n-doped parts of the PV are shown by different colors.

Left: spectral density of PV absorption for the interband TFSC based on CIGS in three cases: our LTS, blooming layer (ARC), and open surface. Right: Power reflectance R from our LTS (thick red curve), and solar irradiance Is in arbitrary units (thin blue curve). Strong reflection at long waves does not result in the low efficiency due to weak solar irradiance in this domain.

Left: spectral density of PV absorption for the TFSC based on Si in three cases: our LTS, blooming layer (ARC), and open surface. Right: Power reflectance R from our LTS (thick red curve), and solar irradiance Is in arbitrary units (thin blue curve).